RSNO tours schools concerts with music education platform Charanga Posted Mon 16 September 2024
Last week, the Royal Scottish National Orchestra (RSNO) performed alongside primary-aged children nationwide, visiting venues and schools in Dundee, Aberdeen, Dumfries and Stewarton. In partnership with Charanga, the music education and technology company, and its music service partners, the concerts blended popular classical music with arrangements of Charanga songs learned in classrooms to create a truly magical musical experience for the children, likely the first for many.
Charanga’s online teaching and learning platform is used by over 12,500 schools, and its programmes support young learners and their teachers in developing a deeper understanding of music. Classroom teachers can use Charanga’s ready-made music lessons, resources, and training to gain confidence in delivering music education regardless of their musical experience.
First launched in November 2023, a suite of RSNO content hosted on the Charanga platform has reached over 1,500 teachers and has brought the orchestra into classrooms across Scotland. Last week’s concerts aimed to further enhance primary schools’ music education with a unique live experience, in harmony with Charanga’s digital offering, enabling young pupils to hear and sing along with Scotland’s National Orchestra.
On the tour, RSNO’s Director of Engagement, Andy Stevenson, said: “Our partnerships enable us to reach new audiences. I’m so pleased with how our relationship with Charanga has progressed since we launched it at the end of 2023. Bringing the orchestra live to children across the country this week, and putting what they’ve learned online into practice, has been such a rewarding venture. We look forward to developing more RSNO music resources for teachers on Charanga in the near future.”
Charanga’s Founder and Director, Mark Burke, added: “To play a part in helping children feel what it’s like to be up close, listening to, and singing with a stunning live orchestra like the RSNO, is immensely satisfying. Our technology and digital learning help children and their teachers develop excellent music skills. Yet, music is ultimately about the live experience, and it really doesn’t get better than these interactive concerts from the RSNO!”
Schools using Charanga benefit all year round from bespoke educational materials developed by the RSNO and Charanga, as well as some of the RSNO’s most popular online learning resources including Yoyo & The Little Auk and Once Upon a Tune. Families can complement their child’s classroom learning by accessing the RSNO’s Noisy Library from home at: rsno.org.uk/rsno-noisy-library/.
Image credit: Aberdeen City Council/Norman Adams
